Nissan North America, which began its relationship with the Heisman Trophy in 2005, is now the “Premier Partner” in an agreement with the Heisman Trophy Trust
that runs through 2016. Besides getting Nissan involved with the trust’s charitable efforts, the partnership lets the Franklin, Tenn.-based automaker bring the coveted trophy on tour to NCAA
football games.
The company will also do consumer sweepstakes, social media, online activities and other events around the Heisman, the company said. For the 2011 season, Nissan created a
special series of “Heisman House” game day commercials featuring the Heisman Trophy and 11 former Heisman Trophy winners.
In addition to its partnership with the Heisman Trophy
Trust, Nissan is a sponsoring partner of the annual Bowl Championship Series, the national championship game between Louisiana State University and Alabama on Jan. 9.
Jon Brancheau, VP of
marketing, Nissan North America, says the new agreement, for four years with an option for one more, helps Nissan stand out in a sport packed cheek by jowl with competitors.
"Strategically,
when you think about NFL football, where we have a big presence, it's very cluttered with automotive advertising. With the Heisman Trophy, we have a right to use it in TV ads [and other
communications] so we think it gives us a big differentiator relative to other autos in that space. You will see us leveraging it for broad overall awareness during the football season."
He
says the "premier" relationship will give the brand more opportunities to include the Heisman Trophy at game events like the "College Football Experience tour, presented by Nissan," which Nissan has
been doing for several years. Brancheau says having the trophy as part of the brand experience brings in large numbers of fans.
"At the Notre Dame versus Michigan game [Sept. 10 last year at
Michigan Stadium, Ann Arbor], for example, some 16,000 people went through [the experience]," he says. "It's very interactive, with all kinds of games, digital challenges, and the chance to take a
picture with the Heisman Trophy, which gets superimposed on a Nissan/Sports Illustrated 'cover'."
He says former Heisman winners who played for the schools at which Nissan hosts the
game-day experience also make an appearance. "In the case of the Ann Arbor game, we had Desmond Howard [NFL player who won the Heisman for Michigan in 1991] with [ESPN sportscaster] Dan Patrick
signing autographs. It's tough to come by an experience like that."
At the Nissan/SI event, visitors get a bracelet with a microchip, so when they register and as they wander through
the experience the chip sends content and photos to their Facebook pages. "This is the first time we have gone that far in terms of sophistication," says Brancheau. He adds that as part of the
local-market activation, the trophy makes whistle stops at local dealerships, a program Brancheau says Nissan will expand. "I just think there is more we can do in that space."
During this
season, Nissan had a presence at 10 NCAA games, and will probably bring the Heisman road show to more markets. "We wouldn't unilaterally do that without [the trust's] knowledge, but we have a great
relationship with them and, at the end of day, we work in collaboration. They would like us to go to more venues, to build more awareness of what the trust is all about."
The expanded deal
will include a deeper relationship with the trust around charitable programs and fund raising. "We'd like to partner more on the philanthropic side; it's an opportunity we haven't tapped," says
Brancheau.
While Nissan's NCAA program tends to put the spotlight on vehicles like pickup trucks -- the Frontier mid-sized truck and Titan full-sized pickup -- Brancheau says that the company
is keeping the focus on the Leaf electric car, which means Leaf will likely have some exposure in Nissan college football activities.
While Leaf isn't exactly the vehicle one might associate
with a pigskin fan base (fans tailgating with a Leaf might make for a humorous spot), Brancheau says the automaker did advertise the electric car in its football media buy last year, and there are
good structural reasons to keep focusing on the electric car as Nissan has over the past year.
"We are building a battery plant in Tennessee and will bring production into the U.S. in 2013,
which means we have an opportunity for significantly more volume," he says. "And we have been [volume] constrained -- all 10,000 units were sold this year, and they were from 20,000 pre-orders -- so
we think we need to continue to sustain relevant share of voice and message for Leaf; we need to continue to build awareness."
He says, going forward, messaging around the car will evolve from
what began as a very environmentally conscious campaign to one with a more pragmatic bent, for an audience of people "who are concerned about the environment but want to have more rational reasons to
purchase; as we continue to expand, we need to have the product appeal to a broader consumer base."